Entrees

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My Dad’s Barbequed Salmon

June 20, 2010 in Entrees, Seafood | 5 comments

Happy father’s day to all of the wonderful dads out there!  Today was a little rough for me.  I can’t believe it has already been five months since my dad passed away.  I miss him so much everyday – sometimes it seems like he was making Jav and I margaritas and ribs just yesterday.  He was the best dad in the whole wide world and I still feel so lucky to have had him as a dad even our time together was cut short. 

 

I thought I would pay tribute to my dad today by posting his favorite barbequed salmon recipe.  For the longest time, this is the ONLY way I would eat any seafood.  I would always ask for extra sauce and loved it because it tastes just like candy.  My dad always said that he got the recipe from an old Native American friend who cooked it on the reservation :) – I am not sure how true that is, but the recipe is fantastic. The ingredients might seem a little strange, but I promise it is great! 

Salmon Buying Tip (my humble opinion):

For this recipe I used Atlantic salmon from Costco, only because it was convenient.  However, I would have preferred to use Wild Alaskan Sockeye Salmon – Skin-on.  Why skin-on you might be asking?  Because it is much better for the grill and I think it has better flavor.  You will notice I don’t have grill marks in the photos.  It is because I used a skinless fillet and that makes it not conducive to turning skin side down on the grill.  The skin will hold the meat together.  Also, please do not fall into the trap of buying $25-30/lb Copper River Salmon.  The Copper River just has great marketing, not necessarily the best fish.  My favorite brand of frozen fish is Orca Bay – I am a little biased because I did used to work for them, but they process great fish!  I personally prefer to buy frozen salmon unless I know it just came off the boat.  The freezing process is incredible now and locks in freshness that is hard to beat.  Plus a lot of the fish labeled fresh at the seafood counter in the grocery store is actually just thawed out.  You never know how long it has been sitting there.  Sorry for the rant.  More questions? Just ask.

Hope you enjoy the recipe as much as I do! Love you dad!!

 

My Dad’s Barbequed Salmon

Printable recipe here

 

1 Large Fillet of Salmon

½ Cup Brown Sugar

Juice of two lemons

2 Tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce

2 Cloves Garlic minced

Couple of good shakes of Lawry’s seasoning salt

¼ Cup Olive Oil

Whisk all ingredients together until well blended. 

Pour ¾ of mixture over salmon in a large dish.

 Reserve the rest of the sauce. Marinate for 30 minutes.  Preheat grill.  If you aren’t using skin-on salmon then lay your fish on a sheet of double-thick aluminum foil. 

Cook salmon for 3-5 minutes per side (if you can’t flip it then 6-10 minutes total). If you use skin-on then cook directly on the grill without the foil. Baste fish with remaining sauce. 

 Don’t overcook the salmon.  It should be flakey and juicy. 

 

Enjoy!

Love,

Lindzee

Sweet Pork Enchiladas with Roasted Green Chile Tomatillo Salsa

March 24, 2010 in Entrees, Pork | 3 comments

 


 

You can probably tell by how much of it I post on this blog, but I absolutely love Mexican food.  I am starting to think I should rename the blog Pink Burrito.  Yes, I said burrito and not taco :) .  Jav loves Mexican food too, which make it easy to please him with my cooking.  I don’t think he ever met a taco that he didn’t like.

It is also fairly easy to prepare and simple to make healthy and low-calorie with a few substitutions.  The key to this recipe is making your own salsa.  I personally am not a big fan of any jarred salsa since it is so easy to make.  But, if you really feel like you want a shortcut, then go ahead and purchase a salsa verde to substitute for the green chile tomatillo salsa in the recipe. However, please don’t tell me about it.  It will make me sad.

The sweetness of the pork contrasts well with the sharpness of the cheese and salsa in this recipe.  To make it healthier than your average enchi,  I used low-fat cheese and purchased a package of low-fat pork sirloins from Costco.  It is a very lean cut of meat with only about 100 calories per 4oz serving.  Plus it is yummers when cooked in the slow cooker!  I would recommend putting the pork in the slow cooker in the morning and letting it cook for 6 hours or up to 10 on low if you need to leave the house.  It will do its magic while you are away!

Sweet Pork Enchiladas with Roasted Green Chile Tomatillo Salsa


Pork

2lb Pork Sirloin Roast

1 Cup Roasted Green Chile and Tomatillo Salsa (Recipe below)

2 Cups Orange Juice

½ Cup Brown Sugar

1 Tablespoon Cumin

1 Tablespoon Chipotle Chile Powder or regular Chile Powder

Put all ingredients in the slow cooker and cook on low for 6-10 hours.  Once cooked, remove from cooker.  It will just fall apart like this if cooked enough.

Shred with two forks.

For extra sweetness and flavor, add the shredded pork back in the slow cooker and cook in the juices for about 20 more minutes on low.  Drain juices and set aside.

Enchiladas

12 Corn Tortillas

1 Can Fat Free Vegetarian Refried Beans

1 Cup 2% Shredded Mexican Cheese (I used Kraft)

Shredded Pork (Recipe above)

Roasted Green Chile and Tomatillo Salsa

Preheat oven to 400.

Cover bottom of casserole dish with a thin layer of green chile salsa. 

Place one tortilla in dish and rub bottom in the salsa. 

 Spoon 1-2 Tablespoons of the refried beans onto the tortilla.  Place 1 oz of shredded pork on top of beans.

 

  Roll up.  Repeat process until all tortillas are used. 

Cover all of the enchiladas with remaining salsa (or less) depending on preference.  Sprinkle with cheese. 

 Bake for 20 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Roasted Green Chile and Tomatillo Salsa

2 Pasillo Peppers (These are mild)

10-12 Medium Tomatillos peeled

1 Jalapeno seeded and deveined

½ White Onion cut into chunks

1 Clove Garlic

Couple of Handfuls of Cilantro

Juice of ½ Lime

1 Teaspoon Salt

Roast peppers and tomatillos on the BBQ over medium heat.

 I only roast the tomatillos for about 5 minutes turning halfway through.  They should look like this when done.

I roast the peppers for 8-10 minutes until the skin turns completely black. 

 Remove from heat and let cool.  Rub and Peel off the charred skin.  It should come off fairly easily. 

 Cut off stems and remove seeds.

Add peppers, tomatillos, onion, garlic, cilantro, lime and salt to the blender. 

Blend until smooth. 

If you want it more chunky then do this in a food processor and pulse into rough chunks.  I like mine smooth.  Keep tortilla chips nearby for tasting. 

 It might need more salt…add more if necessary after tasting.   Chill in fridge to let flavors marry.

Enjoy!

Love,

Lindzee

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Chinese Orange Chicken Lightened-Up

March 15, 2010 in Entrees, chicken | 10 comments

 

 

Gooood Evening!!  It has been entirely too long since my last post.  Unfortunately, a person who shall go unnamed dropped my camera on the hardwood floor and smashed my cute little lens to smithereens. I had to hold back the tears when it happened. RIP little guy.  I shall always remember you.  Fortunately, I received my new lens in the mail just the other day.  So here I am, back at da food blogging.

I have been waiting for this day to come for years.  I am dead serious.  I have been trying to make a healthier version of Chinese restaurant style orange chicken for many moons. I am in love with Chinese food, especially the dishes with deep-fat fried breaded pieces smothered in sugary sauces (yes, I know this is Americanized Chinese food for you food snobs who will undoubtedly leave a nasty comment correcting me).  Regrettably, I know from experience that if you eat this type of thing every night you will gain weight.  So, I have tried and tried to come up with a recipe that is sort of lightened up and tastes like the real thing. The sauce is the key to making this dish work. No store-bought sauce will do.  I even tried the new Panda Express Orange sauce from Costco.   Ladies and Gentlemen, I am here to tell you after countless attempts, I think I am finally satisfied.!While it might not be super healthy, it is healthIER than the restaurant versions.  I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I did!

Chinese Orange Chicken Lightened-Up

 

Chicken

1 lb Skinless Boneless Chicken breasts cut into bite size pieces

4 Tablespoons Flour

Salt and Pepper

1 Tablespoon Vegetable or Canola Oil

Optional:

Steamed Broccoli

Whole Wheat Noodles

Add flour, salt and pepper to a medium ziplock bag.

  Add chicken and toss until all chicken pieces are evenly coated.

  Heat oil over medium high heat in a large skillet. 

 Add chicken pieces and cook for 3 minutes until browned on one side and then turn over and cook another 3 minutes until cooked through. 

 Turn heat down to very low and add enough sauce to fit your tastes. 

I serve mine over broccoli and whole wheat spaghetti. 

 

Orange Sauce

(Depending on your tastes, this probably makes way more sauce than you will need for this recipe)

1/3 Cup Orange Juice

½ Cup Rice Wine Vinegar (Must be rice wine and not regular white vinegar)

½ Cup White Sugar

2.5 Tablespoons Soy Sauce

1 Tablespoon Orange or Lemon Zest (I use lemon)

½ Tablespoon Toasted Sesame Oil

2 Teaspoons Corn Starch

1 Tablespoon Red Pepper flakes (more or less depending on your preference for heat)

Mix corn starch into orange juice until lumps are gone.  Add orange juice mixture and rest of the ingredients together in a small sauce pan over medium heat. 

 Bring to a boil and cook until sauce thickens and coats the back of a spoon – about five minutes. 

 If it doesn’t get thick, then add a little more cornstarch mixed in water. Set aside.

Thanks to my friends over at Spark Recipes I was able to calculate the calories in each serving (this is using all the sauce).  Pretty good compared to the typical 400 calories and 20 grams of fat in the same serving size at a restaurant.

Nutrition Facts
  4 Servings
 
Amount Per Serving
 
  Calories 295.3
 
  Total Fat 5.7 g
 
      Saturated Fat 2.9 g
 
      Polyunsaturated Fat 1.0 g
 
      Monounsaturated Fat 0.8 g
 
  Cholesterol 60.0 mg
 
  Sodium 1,145.7 mg
 
  Potassium 118.7 mg
 
  Total Carbohydrate 34.0 g
 
      Dietary Fiber 1.4 g
 
      Sugars 27.0 g
 
  Protein 26.0 g

 

Holy yum!

Love,

Lindzee

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Italian Sausage and Chicken Pasta Sauce

February 24, 2010 in Entrees, Pasta, Uncategorized | 7 comments

Hola Friends!  I love spaghetti with meat sauce.  Always have.   I make mine with brown sugar so it is a little bit sweet and uses a base of Prego.  Prego is one of the cheapest spaghetti sauces out there and I love it (with a few additions). On a side note, I am not sure why I do this and it is totally dorky, but I always say “She is prego-ragu”, if someone is pregnant.  Weird, but true.

 Anyways,  I used to think my recipe was the best – until I tried this one at our good family friends, Debbi and Steve’s house.  Debbi is a wonderful cook - not to mention a great singer, dancer and hula hooper :) .  She is the appetizer queen (I am hoping she will send me some of those recipes soon)!  Her and Steve very graciously organized my dad’s memorial reception and hosted an after party at their house…where they served this amazing chicken and Italian sausage pasta sauce.  Which is actually a recipe of Debbi’s friend Leslie.  As soon as I ate the first bit, I asked for the recipe.  I only made a few changes, which is really strange for me.  It is fantastic and super simple to make for a crowd.  I served mine with ravioli, but you could use your favorite pasta.  Caesar salad recipe will be posted next. 

 Italian Sausage and Chicken Pasta Sauce

Printable recipe here

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 Tablespoon butter

1 White onion chopped

10 Large mushrooms sliced

3 Garlic Cloves minced

5 Links of uncooked (spicy or mild)Turkey Italian sausage cut into ½ inch pieces

4 Skinless Boneless Chicken breasts cubed (sausage and chicken is easier to cut if it is a little bit frozen

16 oz can diced tomatoes

1 Quart Prego Spaghetti sauce

1 T. Italian Seasoning

¼  cup dried basil

¼ cup dried oregano

2 Tablespoons brown sugar

1/2 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar

6-8 servings of your favorite pasta

In a large stockpot, saute onion and mushroom in the olive oil and butter until soft and onions are translucent.  Add garlic and sauté one minute more. 

Add the chicken and sausage pieces and cook over med- low heat until the meat is browned and cooked through.

  Add the tomatoes, sauce, seasonings, brown sugar and vinegar. 

Stir well.  Simmer over low heat for at least 20 minutes up to an hour stirring occasionally.  You shouldn’t need to season with salt because the sausage has quite a bit of salt already.

Use over cheese ravioli or your favorite pasta.  Sprinkle with parmesan and enjoy.

 

Love,

Lindzee

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Creamy Teriyaki Chicken Fettuccine

February 17, 2010 in Entrees, Pasta | 8 comments

 

Jav’s 28thbirthday was yesterday and we had a few friends over to celebrate.  He keeps thinking he is 29 and not 28, which makes me laugh since I am 29.  I keep trying to convince him that he is actually 29 – it seems to be working.  Since his favorite possession in the whole wide world (with the exception of his MacBook Pro) is his IPhone, I thought I would try and make an IPhone cake.  Well, I tried:

He was really happy when he saw it!  And here are his many faces from the night:

Other pics from the night.

Mavie and Katie had a great time too:

Too much fun:

Disclaimer: I don’t really give my dog alcohol.  Only chocolate. He likes chocolate.  :)

When Jav was in high school he worked a local restaurant called Smoky Mountain Pizza.  He is obsessed with their Teriyaki Chicken Fettuccine and asked me to make it for him for his birthday.  After a few test runs, I think I finally succeeded.  It was pretty darn good.

Happy 29thJav!! The first of many to come :) .

On a side note – here is a link on how to pound meat from Chef Doughty at Boise State Radio.  It had me in hysterics.  http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/idaho/local-idaho-885382.mp3

Creamy Teriyaki Chicken Fettuccine
Printable recipe here

 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
2lbs Chicken Breast Cut into bite size pieces (cutting semi-frozen is easiest)
2-3 Cups Assorted Fresh Veggies Chopped (I used broccoli, zucchini, mushrooms and sugar snap peas)
6-7 Servings Cooked Fettuccini

Sauce
3 Tablespoons Butter
3 Tablespoons Flour
2 Cloves Garlic Minced
2 Cups Half and Half (I bet it would work with 2% milk, but don’t hold me to it.  If you try it let me know)
1 Cup Freshly Grated Parmesan
1 Cup Soy Vay Veri VeriTeriyaki Sauce (Must be this brand. Mmm. So good.)

Heat olive oil in a medium skillet and cook chicken breast pieces until browned and cooked through.  Add veggies and ¼ cup of water and cook 5 minutes more on medium. Set aside.

In a medium stockpot melt butter with garlic over medium heat. 

Add flour and whisk constantly for two minutes, but do not let the flour brown.  Like you would a roux for an alfredo sauce. 

Slowly whisk in milk and bring slowly to a boil while stirring constantly. 

This mixture will thicken up after about 5 minutes of cooking.  Once thick, slowly whisk in parmesan and teriyaki sauce. 

 Let cook for two minutes more while stirring and pour over cooked chicken and veggies in the skillet. (this was a test run and I used different veggies).

 Set heat to low and stir until warmed through.  No need to season, there should be plenty of salt from the sauce. Serve over fettuccini.

Enjoy!

Love,

Lindzee

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